Factors associated with nurses’ self-efficacy in clinical setting in Iran, 2013

BACKGROUND: In nursing, self-efficacy is quite critical for skill performance. Some factors might influence and predict self-efficacy in nurses. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate self-efficacy and the factors predicting nurses’ self-efficacy in clinical setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 264 nurses were selected from five hospitals affiliated to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences by stratified random sampling. General Self-efficacy Scale (GSE) was used to assess a general sense of perceived self-efficacy. The data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and multiple regression analysis. RESULTS: The mean of self-efficacy in all the nurses was 29.78 [Standard Deviation (SD) = 5.82]. Moreover, the self-efficacy of the nurses with diploma, bachelor's, and master's degrees was 32.22 (SD = 6.21), 29.33 (SD = 5.68), and 32.00 (SD = 6.00), respectively. In addition, a significant difference was found between the nurses with bachelor's and diploma degrees regarding their self-efficacy (P = 0.01). Also, a significant relationship was found between self-efficacy and willingness to work in the nursing unit (F = 3.31, P = 0.01) and interest in the nursing field (F = 2.43, P = 0.04). The nurses who had more than 16 years of working experience in the field of nursing reported a better self-efficacy score. Overall, self-efficacy was predicted by the years of experience in the field of nursing (β =0.25, P = 0.009) and the interest in the nursing field (β = −0.15, P = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS: This study indicated that the nurses with diploma degrees gained higher self-efficacy scores compared to those with bachelor's degrees. Changing the nursing curriculum and increasing the motivation in the nursing context might enhance the interest in the nursing field as well as the nurses’ self-efficacy. Of course, other studies are recommended to be conducted to improve the nurses’ self-efficacy.